MariChat
by TheSparkler
Summary: Marinette/Chat Noir oneshots! It's marked as complete to show that most stories in this heading are, in fact, complete, though this may change if there is a multi-chapter scene (each chapter is a stand-alone story unless otherwise noted). This collection is ongoing, and will never really be completed. Let me know what you think and if you have a prompt idea, and thanks for reading!
1. Complements

**Find me on Twitter at TheOneWhoSparks for hints, updates, and more!**

* * *

Marinette knew he was there – she could feel him staring at her – but she waited to see if he would figure it out on his own.

He circled on the trapdoor, trying to see if it was locked from the inside. Undecided, he reached down and pulled the lever.

"Whoa!" (It was unlocked).

"So much for a sly entrance," Marinette laughed, not turning from the mannequin as he slid down the ladder from the loft.

Chat looked over her shoulder to examine her latest project.

"Whatcha maaaking?" he purred, resting his head on her shoulder. She shrugged him off, and stood up to stretch.

"Well if you must know," she started, sticking her needle into the pin cushion on her wrist, "it's a dress for my friend Ayla. She's been obsessed with Ladybug forever, so I'm making her this for her birthday next week."

"Mmmmm," Chat nodded, taking in the red-and-black fabric before him. "What about a certain…black feline?"

Marinette did her best to keep a straight face. "Poor kitty, is someone feeling left out? Do you want a dress too?"

"Not what I meant and you know it," he said, as her face broke into a grin. Marinette ducked her head as she gathered up the thread that surrounded her.

Spinning her chair around to face the black-clad hero, she put her elbows on her knees and her head on her hands.

"So, to what do I owe this visit?" she asked him, resisting the urge to ring the bell on his collar. "This is the 3rd time this month that you've come here. Don't you have a city to save or something?"

"Ladybug can handle it," Chat replied, unintentionally flattering her. "I came here because I heard this place has the best pasties in all of Paris. You wouldn't happen to know if they're open, would you?"

Marinette stood up and walked toward the trapdoor that led to her living room. "Let me check with the owners, and see what they can do." This time, she couldn't help but to reach out and flick the bell as she passed him, hearing the soft _ting!_ mix with his laugh as she climbed down the steps.

"What to bring, what to bring," she mumbled to herself as she scanned the rows of sweets. Her eyes landed on a batch of cupcakes leftover from earlier that day. She pulled two and headed carefully back up the stairs.

"Bon appétit, kitty!" she said, handing Chat one of the miniaturized cakes.

He turned it around in his hand, examining the small ocean before him – complete with an icing fish. He looked up at Marinette, who tried to hide her laughing by taking a bite of her own treat, which sported a large sugar-spun shell.

"We made a bunch of beach-themed cupcakes this morning, and these are all that's left," she explained, watching him sniff the sweet before taking a huge bite out of the top of it, consuming most of the ocean in one go.

"It's _purr_ fect, as always," he declared, finishing the cake and smearing frosting on his nose in the process. When Marinette pointed it out, he responded with "maybe I'm saving it for later!" (he wiped it off when she wasn't looking).

Marinette turned back to the dress and began working on the hemline. Chat watched her as she sewed, completely confident in what she was doing. He liked seeing her like this, instead of the stuttering, shy version of herself that came out around his civilian persona (although he had to admit, her stutter was kind of cute, too).

Marinette got lost in her work, finishing most of the dress. She yawned and glanced back at the clock on her desk, which told her it was just passed midnight. Marinette looked over at Chat, who had been quiet for a while (which was odd, for him). He had started out sitting on the end of her couch, and was now sprawled across it and sound asleep. Marinette smiled and crossed the room to her desk.

"Patrol must have worn him out," she whispered to Tikki, who had been hiding in her bag. Tonight had been Ladybug's turn for patrol, but she had asked Chat to switch the day before so that she would have time to finish Ayla's dress. True to form, Chat had insisted on taking both nights, and had stayed out late to boot.

"Should we wake him up?" breathed Tikki, hovering above Marinette's right shoulder.

"I suppose we'd better," whispered her charge. "He's bound to change back soon. I think it's time for him to head home and get some sleep – though he appears to be ahead on that one," she added.

Tikki ducked into the bag as Marinette moved back across her room toward the sleeping Chat.

"Time to wake up kitty," she said, shaking his shoulder.

"Wha- Marinette, what are you doing here?" He exclaimed, sitting up suddenly. Chat paused and looked around the room, then back at the dark-haired girl in front of him.

"Did I fall asleep?"

She laughed. "Just a little. You've only been out for about an hour, but I bet it's almost time for you to change back."

Right on cue, his ring beeped, and the first pad disappeared.

"It would appear that you are correct," he declared. Chat bounded up the ladder and out the trapdoor to the rooftop. Marinette followed, albeit much slower than the oddly-energetic feline, pulling her bag off the desk as she passed.

He balanced on the railing, using one hand to hold on and the other to extend his staff to its normal length.

"I bid thee adieu," he said with a bow. Marinette shook her head and laughed at his theatrics.

Chat stood up and bent his knees to jump, then quickly turned and added,

"Give my compliments to the chef!"

Marinette sighed and leaned up against the railing, watching him bound across the rooftops of Paris.

"Tikki, what are we going to do with that Chat?"


	2. Not Impossible

"Pound it!"

 _Beep Beep Beep_

"Woops, better go!" Ladybug unhooked her yo-yo and flew off into the night.

It had been a quiet patrol – with the Kung Food attack earlier that day, Hawk Moth had given up for the time being. Marinette passed the Agreste mansion on her patrol route, and had stopped to make sure that Adrien was okay (unfortunately, all she could glimpse of him was a lump under his many blankets – though why he needed so many blankets in the middle of the summer was beyond her).

"Tikki, spots off!" Marinette slid down the ladder from the loft onto the floor of her room. She hummed to herself as she hunted down her pajamas and left to brush her teeth, unaware of what was coming…

The wind whistled through his hair, filling him with exhilaration and energy. He had stopped by his room to let the kwami recharge, and was now back on the rooftops of Paris, bounding through the city. Their patrol had ended earlier than usual, and after the attack that day, he wanted to make sure that she was okay. She'd seemed fine at the time, but he had lost track of her during the attack, when he had transformed. If he was being honest with himself, he really just wanted an excuse to go see her (but when are people ever honest with themselves?). He knew he didn't have a lot of time, but Plagg had agreed to go, so here they went!

He landed on top of the bakery without a sound, and checked the surrounding area to see if he had been noticed.

 _All clear!_ He stood up and walked to the trapdoor. The lever gave without a hitch. He dropped onto her bed and flipped over the railing onto the floor – just as she emerged from the stairs.

"Woah!" She tripped backward, flailing her arms in a vain attempt to catch herself. He reached out and caught her wrists just before she hit the floor, failing to notice the small red figure that darted around him.

"Chat?! What on earth are you doing here?" she whisper-yelled (her parents were on the floor below them). Marinette let the blond put her back on her feet, and closed the door underneath her. She moved across her room to retrieve her toothbrush, which had gone flying. Putting it back on her desk, she noticed that her bag was shaking slightly.

 _Haha, Tikki, it was very funny – why didn't you warn me he was here?!_

"Sorry about that," he said, making an apologetic face. "I didn't mean to scare you. I just wanted to make sure you were okay."

"Of course, why wouldn't I be?" she asked, glancing at his ring. _Why hadn't his miraculous run out? It had beeped at the Tower 20 minutes ago!_

"The akuma attack today," Chat said in a low voice, trying to avoid scaring her again. "Kung Food is your uncle, isn't he?"

"He's… my mom's… uncle…" Marinette hesitated. "How did you know we're related?"  
"I uhhh…" _Plagg, a little help here!_ "I…saw you on T.V. when he won! I heard he named the soup after you?"

"He did, yeah," she replied softly, grabbing a sweatshirt off the back of her chair and pulling it on over her head. "So what have you been up to? Don't you and Ladybug go on patrols at night? Aren't you going to change back soon?"

"Is that what you're worried about? Unfortunately for you," he winked, "I've changed back to my civilian self since the patrol, so I am good to go." ( _For a while, anyway!_ ).

"Ahhh," Marinette sighed, sitting cross-legged on her couch and hugging a pillow to her chest.

"Is… something wrong?" asked Chat, sitting on the floor in front of her. _Was she hurt? Why oh why didn't he keep track of her when he transformed!_

"It's nothing, really, I'm fine," she said, attempting a smile and playing with a loose thread on her jacket.

"It must be something, Marinette. You seem…sadder than usual. Was it the attack?" he asked, trying (and failing) to read her face ( _it's like she's wearing a mask or something!_ ).

"No! It's not that at all. It's just…"

"Just what, Marinette? I can't help you if you don't tell me."

"Have you ever had a secret?" she blurted out, talking fast before she could change her mind. "Have you ever had a secret so big and so powerful that you can't ever tell anyone, no matter how much you want to, because it could hurt them? Like, you see someone every day, and you cringe because you know you're hiding something from them, but they have no idea? Have you ever felt like the secret was going to eat you from the inside out because you have to keep it bottled up all the time?"

Chat just looked at her, slightly astonished by her outburst. _I know just the feeling…_

"Are we really talking about keeping secrets here, Marinette? Have you looked at who you're talking to?"

Marinette peeked up from the pillow she was hiding behind to find her partner staring at her, eyebrows raised and half a smile on his face.

"Oh my gosh, Chat, I totally forgot!"

"Glad to know I'm so memorable."

"No, that's not what I –" Marinette broke off when he burst out laughing.

"C'mon, Mari, you know I'm kidding! And yes, I do know a thing or two about life-changing secrets. What kind of secret could a girl like you have that you can't ever tell anybody? I thought girls told their friends everything."

"You have no idea what I'm really like," she said, throwing the pillow at his face with enough force to knock him on his back. "I could secretly be a supervillain or something, and you would never know."

"Villain, no. Hero?" he nodded his head. "I could see it."

 _Stupid Chat, you already do!_ Marinette bit her lip to avoid saying it out loud. _Did he really just call me a hero…?_

"Look," she said, standing up and shaking her foot, which had fallen asleep, "It's been a long day, and I think it might be time for you to head home, kitty. Won't someone notice that you're gone?"

"No likely," he mumbled, then glanced up with a smile. "I suppose you're right." He stood and stretched up to his two-inches-taller-than-her height. "Are you ever going to tell me this life-changing secret?"

"Not likely," she smiled, shooing him out the trapdoor as his ring started to beep.

"Not likely…but not impossible."


	3. Ask Me

"Are you sure I can't punch him in the face?"

"I'm quite sure."

"What if I just break his nose a little?"

"Alya!"

"Alright, fine, I'll leave him alone," she relented, glancing over at her friend. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine, honestly," assured Marinette, taking a deep breath and drawing up her shoulders. "Who needs him, anyway? If he wants to go to the dance with Chloe, let him. Who are we to tell him what he can or can't do?"

Just as she convinced herself that she was fine, just fine, Chloe brushed passed them and ran into Marinette's shoulder – hard.

"Look out!" said the blonde. "We're in a hurry to get to the mall – we just have to find him the PERFECT outfit for the dance. Right Adrikins?"

Marinette ducked her head to avoid his gaze, and rushed out the doors and down the steps. _He'd better not start feeling SORRY for me…it's him who has to spend the whole night with her, not me!_

Once in the safety of her room, Marinette dropped her bag with a loud sigh, then started to think. Alya had been worried that she was upset. _Ladybug? Upset? Impossible._ Marinette attempted a laugh, then shook her head and waved her hands as she paced. _Why would I be upset? It's not like the guy of my dreams just turned me down in front of the whole class or anything…OH WAIT._ The more she moved, the more riled up she got. _I cannot BELIVE him, letting Chloe play him like that. What was he thinking? Was he even thinking at all?_ She paused, realizing what was happening. She wasn't upset at all…she was MAD. Mad at Chloe for manipulating him, mad at Adrien for falling for it, mad at herself for not seeing what was happening before it was too late. She had to get out of here – out of her room, out of these shoes, out of her own head.

"Tikki, spots on!"

She flew out the window and into the bright afternoon sun.

* * *

"Marinette, are you feeling alright? You look a little pink. Do you have a fever?"

"I'm fine, Mom, really. I think I might turn in early – get some extra sleep for my growing brain and all."

"Alright, dear. Call us if you need anything okay?"

"I will. Goodnight, Mom. Night Papa."

Marinette trudged up the stairs. _No wonder I'm pink in the face,_ she fumed. Even flying through the city, saving a cat from a tree, and eating dinner with her parents hadn't been enough to distract her. _I can't believe she did that, I can't believe he let her…_

* * *

"Do you think I should go talk to her?"

"What are you going to say? Just show up at the door and tell her it wasn't what it looked like? Great plan, kid."

"Plagg, I'm serious," Adrien sighed, flicking his kwami off the keyboard. "She wouldn't even look at me after school."

"Why did you say no, anyway? I though you liked her."

"I do, it's just…" he groaned, giving up on his homework. "I thought Marinette was asking me to help her PLAN the dance, not go to it!" He ran his hands through his hair, then dropped them in his lap. The poor girl had been stuttering so much he could barely understand her, and then Chloe had swooped in and put her arm around his shoulders, pulling him away and announcing that he was going to the dance with HER. Marinette had gaped at him in shock, and spent the rest of the day staring at her desk. Adrien had finally managed to track down Alya after school to figure out what had happened, but she wouldn't listen when he had insisted that it was all a misunderstanding. Even worse, he had spent 4 hours with Chloe that afternoon, who made him try on over a dozen suits, none of which she liked and all of which looked the same to him.

"Plagg, we're going over."

"We? But I just got comfortable!"

"Plagg – claws out!"

The moon was full, and his shadow raced beside him as he ran. As Chat approached the bakery, he saw a lone figure on the rooftop. Moving closer, he realized it was Marinette, who was…kickboxing? Kung Fu fighting? Warding off a swarm of bees? Intrigued, he jumped onto the railing as she turned her back to punch at the air behind her.

"Ahem!"

"Woah!" Marinette's leg swung out behind her, sending her crashing to the ground. "Who ar- oh, it's you," she said, easing back to her feet. "What are you doing?"

He smiled and dropped down onto the rooftop. "I was just about to ask you that myself. Are there ghosts up here or have you taken up a weird form of yoga?"

"Yoga, no. Stress relief, yes," she replied, irritated, for the first time, that he was there. _Doesn't he have a damsel to save of something? Geez._

"Someone seems…different than usual," Chat remarked, staring curiously at her defensive stance. "Is it something I said?"

"No, it's just…" she relaxed slightly, and gave in to the conversation. "Some days, it's like you're holding a stick and everyone around you looks like a piñata. You know?"

"Uhhhh…" Whatever he had been expecting her to say, that clearly wasn't it.

"Sorry, I'm just… frustrated at this boy in my class." Marinette said, missing his startled expression (S _he's MAD at me?_ ).

"Wha – what… what happened?" Chat stuttered, sitting on the railing behind him. He crossed his legs, put his elbow on his knee, and propped his head on his fist in awkward, jerky movements.

 _What the heck is wrong with him? It's like I offended him or something._

Marinette sighed and sat cross-legged on the ground. "It's nothing, really." She took a deep breath. "I tried to ask the guy I like to a school dance and he left while I was talking and said he was going with another girl instead of me and completely ignored me for the rest of the day."

"So you aren't…upset?"

She looked at him like he had just sprouted an extra ear. "Why on earth would I be upset? It's not my fault he was such a jerk."

Chat stared at her, trying to register what she said. _Mad…jerk…my fault…_

"Chat…are you…okay?"

He snapped back to reality to find her looking at him with concern. "Do you…do you need help?"

"No, I'm – I'm fine," he said unconvincingly, rubbing the back of his neck. "Did ever think that maybe…maybe it wasn't his fault?"

"That what wasn't whose fault?" she asked, her eyebrows scrunched in confusion.

"That maybe this…boy…you're talking about…actually wanted to go to the dance with you? Maybe he just…misunderstood what you meant!"

"Maybe…" Marinette trailed off. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, really! I was just thinking that maybe you should…give this boy a second chance?"

"I don't know, Chat," she said, looking past him at the moon. "What if I mess it up again? Then he'll really think I'm strange."

"You? Strange? No way! Any guy would be crazy to turn you down, Marinette. He just needs another chance," he said quickly, dropping down to sit on the ground across from her.

 _Please, please ask me again, Mari! Please, please…_

"I guess you could be right…" she replied, turning back to him. "But if he turns me down again, I'm blaming you!"

"Trust me, Marinette," said the Chat as he stood up and stretched out his legs. "I'm sure he'll say yes – all you have to do is ask."


	4. Independence Day

**Hey guys! Happy 4th of July! I know, I know, France's Independence Day is different than ours (they celebrate Bastille Day on July 14th), but they, too, celebrate with food and fireworks (and a red-white-and-blue flag!). Let me know what you think in the comments, and happy reading!**

* * *

Marinette sat cross-legged on the chair, leaning back and looking up at the dark sky above her. Any moment now, they would start the fireworks display from the base of the Eiffel Tower, and she didn't want to miss a moment of it. Tikki sat on her shoulder, both excited and afraid in anticipation of the exploding colors (she had never seen fireworks before). The kwami dropped her gaze toward the skyline – and found a dark shape moving quickly toward them. She squeaked and dove into Marinette's bag.

"Tikki, wha-?"

"Hello, m'lady," he purred, landing on the railing beside her. Marinette jumped, then realized who she was talking to and rolled her eyes.

"Really, Chat? Do you have to scare me every time you show up?"

The hero grinned. "What fun would it be if I told you ahead of time!"

He jumped down beside her, mirroring her pose from the ground. "What are you doing up here all by yourself? Shouldn't you be out celebrating with your family?"

Marinette kicked off her shoes and curled her blue-socked feet back underneath her. "I should be asking you the same thing. My parents aren't big fans of fireworks, so we went out to lunch today instead. What are you doing here?"

Chat Noir sighed, trying to hide the droop in his ears. "My family doesn't celebrate much. My dad is still at work, and probably won't be home for a while. They won't even notice that I'm gone."

Marinette, looking up at the still-dark sky, jumped out of her chair. "In that case, I'll be right back!" She pulled open the trapdoor and dropped down onto her bed. With the help of her kwami, she put together a picnic, complete with a blanket and juice. As they finished and went back to Marinette's room, the fireworks started. Tikki, terrified of the sudden loud noises, opted to stay inside. Marinette moved her shoebox bed to the window sill, so that the kwami could still see what was happening outside.

Marinette climbed carefully back out onto the roof, carrying the basket on her arm. She couldn't help but to laugh at the confused look on Chat Noir's face.

"Have you never had a picnic?" She asked, moving her chair to the side and spreading the blanket out on the ground. Noir shook his head and watched her unpack the basket, completely ignoring the exploding sky above them. Marinette handed him the container of potato salad and a fork, keeping the macaroni salad for herself. She leaned back against the railing behind her, and looked up at the fireworks as she ate. Chat Noir, still a little unsure, moved to sit beside her.

"So…do you have picnics often?" He asked, looking at her out of the corner of his eye.

"Sometimes," Marinette started, shifting on the hard ground. "We go to the park a lot in the summer, so we usually take food with us and have lunch on the grass. Don't you?"

"We don't go out much," he replied, quickly moving his eyes back to the flying colors as she turned to look at him. "I mostly eat alone, or with my dad's assistant."

"Sounds lonely," said Marinette softly, watching his profile. His face seemed…sad, though it was hard to tell through his mask. He shook himself slightly, and looked down to accept the juice box she was offering him.

"Fruit punch? My favorite!" Chat excitedly stabbed the box with the straw and drank half of it in one go. Marinette laughed and opened her own, Noir's smile matching hers. They sat back and watched the fireworks for several minutes (at least, Marinette did). Several minutes later, there was a slight break in the explosions, as the second half of the show would take place from a barge on the river. Marinette moved the picnic basket back toward her and pulled out a bag of chocolate chip cookies. Noticing her partner's empty juice container, she crawled back to the trapdoor and dropped down to get more. She snuck through the kitchen, and heard snoring coming from her parent's room. She climbed the stairs into her room, and stopped to check on her kwami.

"How are you? Do you like the fireworks?"

Tikki nodded, then yawned widely. "Say goodnight to Chat Noir for me, would you?" She mumbled sleepily. Marinette quietly laughed, then tucked her small red partner under her specially-made black and green blanket, and clicked off the lamp.

Once back on the roof, she found Noir exactly where she had left him. He happily drank his juice, and almost choked when the bright explosions started up again, further to the side than before. Marinette slid her back down the wall behind her, trying to find a comfortable position against the hard brick that surrounded her. Chat slowly shifted sideways, so that Marinette ended up leaning partly against his shoulder. As the fireworks continued, they sat and watched, sometimes talking and sometimes just enjoying the silence (minus the booms and pops from above them, of course).

The colorful display lasted for about half an hour, and by the time it was over Marinette was leaning completely up against Noir, with his arm around her shoulders to keep her from slipping. Chat sighed happily. His legs had fallen asleep a while ago, but he wouldn't move for the world (or even an akuma). Marinette mumbled something incoherently, and moved closer to her human pillow – the tired hero had fallen asleep. Adrien chuckled to himself as he looked down at his sleeping classmate. _If only she knew who she snuggling up against,_ he thought, trying to imagine her reaction to his civilian self (he was sure it would involve a lot of embarrassed mumbling on her part).

He reached slowly with his free hand to undo her pigtails and tuck her hair behind her ears. She reached up (probably trying to find what was touching her head), and grabbed his hand, pulling it up against her in her sleep. Chat Noir laughed silently through his nose. Did it get any better than this?

All too soon, it felt to Chat, his ring let out a beep; Plagg, letting him know that it was time to go home. He sighed, and promised himself that he would come back, and soon. Collecting the sleeping designer in his arms, his kissed the top of her head and smiled. _I'll be back, Mari…_

* * *

The next morning, Marinette woke up in her room. Propping up on her elbows, she realized that there was a quilted blanket over her that hadn't been there when she had gone to bed. _Wait…when did I go to bed? I was on the roof – Chat!_

She reached up and opened the trapdoor above her, climbing groggily onto the roof. Sitting next to the door was her picnic basket, perfectly packed, with a sticky note from her desk on top.

 _Thank you for my first-ever picnic, Marinette. Happy Independence Day!_


	5. Abominations

"You don't strike me as a professional criminal."

He grinned (or at least, it sounded like he did, she couldn't tell, but with him it was usually a pretty safe bet). "That's what makes me so good at it."

Marinette eyed the pink lump on the balcony beside her, looking extremely skeptical. "And what exactly have you done that makes you so felonious?"

"You mean felineous?" Marinette, picturing the stupid look on his face, resisted the urge to throw him over the railing for the second time that evening. "I am a master thief," continued the boy under the blanket, and she could imagine him rubbing his hands together like a villain from a movie.

"So, what have you stolen? I thought you were supposed to be the 'hero of Paris' or something." She couldn't resist using finger quotes, knowing that her partner couldn't see her. Even as Marinette, her Ladybug side couldn't help but to leak out when Noir was around, and thankfully he never seemed to notice.

"Me? A hero? No way, that's Ladybug's job, she's way better at being heroic than I am. I just swing in and make everything look cool, all the while stealing the hearts of every bachelorette in the country."

"Stealing the hear- Chat!" Marinette, finally getting his joke, reached over and wacked his cloth-covered shoulder. "Is your kwami-thing done yet?"

Chat Noir, after making his getaway from the most recent akuma, had cut it too close and detransformed before he made it home (Ladybug had left slightly earlier, hoping to beat her own clock, and he assumed that she had). He had crash-landed on the rooftop of his classmate, and hearing footsteps, he had stolen a light-pink blanket off the nearby sunchair and hidden himself underneath it just as Marinette had opened the trapdoor. He knew that Chat Noir on her balcony would be hard to explain, but Adrien Agreste on her balcony would be next to impossible. To say she was surprised to find a person under a blanket on her roof was definitely an understatement – the blue-haired girl had quite literally jumped, accidentally throwing her book several feet behind her and almost falling back through the trapdoor herself.

"Hello?" She had sounded defensive, and Adrien, knowing full well that she could potentially throw him off the roof if she wanted, did some _very_ quick thinking.

"Marinette, it's me, Chat Noir! My transformation wore off after the akuma attack, and my kwami needs some help before I can transform again."

"Your what?"

"My kwami – he helps me with my powers and stuff like that. He needs food of some kind before he can transform me back."

"Cheese!" A tiny voice had shouted, and Marinette, laughing, had taken her book safely back to her room and soon returned with the requested cured dairy, passing it under the borrowed blanket to the blond superhero.

Now, she sat beside the lump, waiting for his cat-like kwami to recharge (she knew exactly was a kwami was, but he didn't need to know that). When she had gone through her room to get to the kitchen, she had explained the situation to Tikki, who had broken down into giggles at the thought of Chat Noir stuck under a blanket until Plagg got what he wanted. While waiting for the kwami to re-charge, Marinette sat cross-legged beside her partner on the roof, chatting the time away. Her parents had gone out for an anniversary dinner shortly before his arrival, so the house was quiet. Fortunately, the odd lump on the roof went unnoticed by pedestrians on the sidewalk below, who were either in a hurry to get home after a long workday or busy talking on their phone, gossiping about the latest akuma attack and the struggle experienced by Ladybug and Chat Noir to take them down. The sun was low in the sky, projecting that last of the day's warmth onto the rooftop balcony where the pair sat.

"So, other than being a heart thief, what do you like most about being a superhero?"

"What is this, 20 questions?" Came the muffled reply, followed by "Plagg, we don't have all day, you know!"

"Yeah, yeah, I know I know." The smaller voice of the kwami was stifled as well, but Marinette guessed that this was due at least partly to the cheese in his mouth (she had brought Camembert at Tikki's suggestion, much to Plagg's delight – it was getting old, and no one in her house liked it much anyway).

"You never answered my question, Chat. What is the best part?" She expected him to say freedom, or fame, or super strength, or even the black leather suit and ears, but she was not at all prepared for what he actually said, stated so simply that it seemed there was never any other option.

"Ladybug."

The girl in question, much to her own embarrassment, blushed (not that he could see her, but _still_ ).

"Ladybug?" He had spoken so matter-of-factly that it was no denying that he was sincere, but she had to ask anyway, her arms waving awkwardly in the air in true Marinette form. "Why, uh, why Ladybug?"

"She's my partner, my other half. She's the peanut butter to my jelly, the Sherlock to my Watson, the ranch to my cheese pizza, the Ginny to my Harry – in a word, she's perfect."

"Perfect, we'll get back to," the heroine started, looking concerned, "but ranch on pizza? Seriously? What kind of monster are you!?" Marinette, even though she was flattered by his description, simply could not move on until she had confronted this culinary cat-astrophe.

"You don't eat ranch with pizza? It's the best part!" As she was still struggling to process this, she heard him mutter, "Plagg, you've had long enough – claws out!" Moments later, a transformed Chat Noir was sitting beside her, the pink blanket wrapped around his shoulders like a cape. Marinette looked out across the city with a serious expression and responded in a deadpan voice, leaning back on her hands as she looked up.

"Chat Noir, we can no longer be friends."

He put his hand to his heart dramatically and gasped. "My dear lady, how ever could you say a thing like _that_!"

" _Cold ranch_ and _melted cheese_ , Noir." She looked at him for the first time, refusing to smile as he positively _beamed_ at her. "That's an abomination if I've ever heard one. It's a fundamental, irreversible, unforgivable, prophesies-never-coming-true character flaw." He raised his eyebrows and frowned, trying (and failing) to match her serious demeaner. "Even Ladybug would agree it was a deal-breaker, trust me."

"Wanna know what I think?" Noir leaned closer, his stupid smile making its way back onto his face.

"What?" Marinette, knowing that she was fighting a losing battle, could feel the corners of her lips start to twitch.

"I think that you have never truly lived, Miss Dupain-Cheng, until you have eaten pizza and ranch in the same bite."

"Pizza is good, ranch is good, pizza and ranch together just take a double positive and make it a negative." Her jaw was tense in her fight to appear stoic.

"A double negative can make a positive, and a positive and a negative can make a negative, but a double positive can't make a negative! It goes against the basic laws of math and physics…and humanity!"

Marinette crossed her arms and rolled her eyes, avoiding his gaze (and therefore, his dopy smile), and followed up with the best response she could think of, which pawsitively dripped in sarcasm.

"Yeah, right."

Chat Noir opened his mouth to retaliate, then stopped. Did _Marinette Dupain-Cheng_ just make a  pun? And a fantastical, _grammatical_ pun at that?! _ **(If you do not understand this pun, see the note at the bottom of the story)**_

"You know," he said, mimicking her pose, "I think I've changed my mind about the best part of being a superhero."

"Oh?" Marinette was both intrigued and confused as to how they got back to heroism from his cheesy infraction. She finally relaxed and gave a half-smile, putting her hands on the brick behind her and leaning back again with her legs straight out in front her her. "And what would that be?"

"It's a tie," he stated, pulling the blanket tighter around his shoulders.

"Between what?"

"You and Ladybug."

"Ladybug and me? How on Earth do I compare to Ladybug? I'm not exactly a superhero, you know."

She glanced over briefly to find Chat Noir looking at her like she had completely missed the point, arms tucked into the rosy fabric that surrounded him as he sat cross-legged beside her. She looked away, fighting the red that insisted on creeping up her face at his description of his partner. "It's not about being a _hero_ , Marinette. You don't have to be fearless to be brave, and you don't have to risk your life to have a heart of gold. Ladybug may be the other half to Chat Noir, but I'm someone under the mask too, just like she is, and that boy could really use a friend or two these days." She looked over at him, finally letting herself fully smile as he looked her in the eye and went on. "If I had never become Chat Noir, I would've never gotten to know you, or hear you tell terrible puns, or watch your whole face light up when you laugh. Not getting to know you, Marinette? _That_ , my friend, is the true abomination in this world, regardless of your feelings on certain unnamed food combinations."

"Pizza and ranch should be illegal," Marinette muttered, smiling and nudging his shoulder with hers to show her gratitude. They sat in silence for several minutes, both recovering from the adrenaline rush of the afternoon. The sun was truly setting now, and a light breeze picked up as the evening began to fade. Marinette pulled her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around her legs, refusing to admit that she was starting to get cold. It was rare that she got to see her partner so calm, and she wasn't about to miss it because she was a little chilly. She heard a slight rustle next to her, then found that her blanket, which had previously pretected the identity of the hero beside her, was now being wrapped around her shoulders. She grabbed the corners gratefully, and smiled as he carefully inched closer to sit with his shoulder against hers putting his hands out behind him and leaning back so that they were almost, but not quite, touching.

Marinette sighed in content as the sky melted from pink to purple. She slid down and found herself with her head on her partner's shoulder, who was careful not to move ( _like when a cat lets you pet them and you don't want to scare them off_ , thought Marinette with a smile). They sat, leaning up against each other, and watched as the last of the sun faded and the moon started to shine, full and bright in the velvety-blue sky.

As the stars began to shine, Chat Noir sighed, knowing that he had to go before he was missed at home. Marinette, hearing him breathe, smiled and sat up, knowing what he was thinking. He stood up slowly and stretched, pulling his baton from the loop on his back.

"Thanks for letting me borrow your roof, Mari," he said, reaching down to ruffle her hair.

She ducked his hand and stood up as he balanced on the railing, pulling the blanket around her shoulders like a cape. It smelled like him now, a wonderful combination of pine lotion and apple shampoo, with just a touch of hairspray. "Come back some time if you want – just don't bring any food with you, okay?"

He laughed and shook his head, still in denial of her claims of outrage. He stood on the edge of the roof and turned to face her. Holding his extended baton like a formal cane, he bowed and tipped an imaginary hat. Marinette curtsied back, using the blanket around her as a skirt.

"See ya around, Chat Noir."

"Goodnight, m'lady." He winked and tipped backward, letting himself fall off the roof dramatically before kicking off the wall and flipping to land on his feet on the sidewalk below. He looked up and gave her a two-finger salute before bounding off through the streets of Paris, startling several remaining pedestrians along the way. Marinette watched him go, then looked up at the stars around her and smiled.

"Goodnight, partner…and thank you."

* * *

 **For the "double positive" pun, the words 'yeah' and 'right' are both generally used to convey agreement or are used to affirm that someone is correct about something ("Did I do this correctly?" "Yeah, you're right!"). When you put them together, however, it becomes sarcastic and negative,** **especially** **if you add an eye roll - "yeah, right." Do you have a favorite pun? Do you want to see it in a story? Let me know, and thanks for reading!**


	6. The Cat King

Marinette curled up tighter in the corner of her bed, much to the concern of her kwami.

"Marinette, I'm sure you're just taking this all out of context! You have no idea what he talking about before!"

The blue-haired heroine just groaned into her pillowcase, eyes shut tight against the world. "He said he didn't like me, Tikki. What else could that possibly mean?"

"Marinette, all you heard him say was that he didn't like the idea of hiding things from his friends!"

"Yeah, then immediately stopped talking when I walked into the room! What else could it possibly mean other than that he doesn't like me and he just doesn't want to admit it to Nino or Alya?"

"You're being ridiculous, you know." The kwami, who exactly what Adrien had been talking about thanks to her stellar hearing (not to mentioned the certain cat-like creature that he had been talking to), just shook her head. Marinette groaned and rolled over toward the wall, wrapping herself in a cocoon of blankets and hiding her face in her pillow.

Unfortunately for her, it was because of this pillow to the face that she failed to notice her kwami dart out of sight as a dark figure dropped onto the trapdoor in the ceiling. Even under a cocoon of blankets, however, it was impossible to miss the knock that came from directly above her, scaring her so badly she could almost swear her heart stopped right then and there.

"Marinette? Are you here?"

She shifted the bedding just enough to see the boy in black on her rooftop, scanning the room in search for the girl that was, _literally_ , right in front of him. Instead of answering, Marinette flung her pillow at the trapdoor as hard as she could, snickering at the highly undignified shriek that came from above her as he fell off the pane of glass in surprise. In a slightly better mood, Marinette stood up on her bed and stuck her head out the door, looking innocently at the leather-covered figure on the ground at her eye level.

"Are you looking for someone, Chat Noir?"

"That…" He was gasping dramatically, one hand on his chest and the other draped across his face as he lay prone on his back. "…was very rude!"

"I have absolutely no idea what you mean. Care to explain?"

"That's it!" Noir lunged forward, pulling her up and onto the roof with surprising ease. Poor Marinette, not expecting the sudden movement, went tumbling sideways and ended up on the ground beside him, laughing even before she hit the rooftop. They lay there for a moment, side-by-side, laughing slightly and recovering from the double jump scares. Marinette sighed and relaxed, closing her eyes and folding her hands across her stomach.

"So, Chat Noir, what brings you here on this sunny afternoon?"

"Oh you know, I was craving some baked goods the other day and just so happened to be in your neighborhood this afternoon…"

"You are terrible!" Marinette laughed as she sat up, brushing her hair back out of her eyes. "I just fed you like, last week!"

He sat up from beside her and smiled himself, realizing that he had, in fact, used that very same excuse just the week before. "Okay okay, maybe I'm just here to see you. After all, a friend's a friend, baked goods or otherwise."

"That," she said, swatting at him (he ducked with ease of practice), "is a terrible motto."

"What's a motto?"

"I don't know, what's the 'motto' with you?!" Marinette, trying and failing to hold a straight face, burst into laughter at her own joke. "Get it…motto…like…the Lion King…" She doubled over, arms wrapped around her shaking midsection as she giggled uncontrollably.

"The lion what?" She looked over at him, sure that he was kidding, but Noir's straight face of innocence was, surprisingly enough, completely genuine.

"You've never seen the Lion King?"

"I…take it that's a movie?"

"Chat!" Marinette reached for him again, this time connecting the back of her hand with his shoulder. "How on Earth have you made it through this many years of life and you don't even know what the Lion King is?! What did you spend your childhood doing if it wasn't watching Disney movies all night?"

"Uhhh…" He shrugged and raised his eyebrows, for once at loss of a good comeback. "Word puzzles?"

"Oh my gosh, we have to fix this, this is ridiculous."

"Fix wha-whoa!" One moment, Chat had been sitting on the rooftop talking to his friend, and the next he was falling through the trapdoor, landing on her comforter with a heavy _thump_. He watched as she darted across the floor below him, flicking her laptop computer to life and dropping down the stairs into the apartment below. By the time he made it down the ladder (he was tempted to flip off the rail and onto the floor, but he didn't want to give her another heart attack when she came back up), Marinette had reemerged, a DVD movie case in her hand.

"Here!" She tossed it to him across the room and disappeared back downstairs. Noir caught the case with ease and flipped it to the front to examine it. The majority of the case front was taken up by an animated male lion, with a couple other animals in the foreground (as well as what looked like a baboon holding up a lion cub – what the heck was that all about?). Just as he finished examining the back cover (he didn't recognize any of the actors names, which honestly didn't surprise him very much), his friend came back into the room, this time with a large white bowl and a pair of juice bottles in her arms. Trading him the bowl and drinks for the DVD, she grabbed her computer off the desk and climbed carefully back into the loft, untangling the sheets and spreading the comforter back out so they could sit on it. When he didn't follow, she stuck her head over the edge to look at him. "Are you coming up?"

"Oh!" Finally realizing what was happening, Noir passed the popcorn bowl up to her, the scaled the latter with one hand to join her in the pile of cushions. She opened the disc drive on her laptop and clicked the DVD into place, spinning it slightly before pushing it back into the computer. The hardrive began to whirr to life as Marinette reached for one of the bottles, twisting off the cap and fast-forwarding to the movie menu at the same time.

"Are you ready to witness one of the greatest cinematic masterpiece of all time?"

"That good, huh?" Noir, having left his boots on the ground below, twisted so he was half-propped up on the pillow behind them with his legs beside hers, the computer half on her lap and half on his.

"Oh yea."

As the music started to build, Marinette, completely enthralled, shifted slightly adjust the computer screen, not realizing that this put her closer to the boy in black (not that he was about to complain). He watched as the sun began to rise red over Africa, smiling slightly and settling in to witness one of the greatest cinematic masterpieces of all time (or so he had heard). By the time it was over, he was just an enthralled as she was, and had almost – but not quite – failed to notice when she fell asleep on his shoulder three fourths of the way through.

* * *

"Hey Marinette, wait up!"

True to form, Marinette tripped at the sound of his voice, somehow managing to stutter without saying a single word.

"A-Adrien! How are you…today?" Fortunately, the blond ignored the strange emphasis and answered the question as though it had been asked normally.

"I'm doing really good! I actually wanted to ask you something?" Before Marinette could think of a thousand different terrible scenarios in her head (before she could even think of one, which is impressively fast), Adrien started again.

"Do you wanna come over and watch a movie with me sometime?"

Marinette opened her mouth, closed it, then opened it again, all without a single coherent word. _Great job, Mari, keep up the good work._

"Well, I, uh," She could hear Tikki's voice in her head cheering her on. _The word is 'yes', Marinette, just spit it out!_

"Yes?" _Close enough!_

"Great! Cause I just got the second Lion King movie and I haven't seen it yet." Adrien kept talking as they walked down the hallway, waving his arms dramatically. "I mean, the first one is just so good, ya know?"

"A cinematic masterpiece," Marinette replied quietly, earning her a grin from the boy next to her, reminding her strongly of the laugh she had gotten from using the very same phrase with a different blond the day before.

"Can I tell you a secret, Mari? I'm tired to hiding it, and I need help to fix the problem." She nodded, not trusting her voice to not sound squeaky. He was using a stage whisper and leaning close to her, as though afraid that someone would overhear but still speaking loud enough that she was sure half the hallway was listening in.

"I've only ever seen like three Disney movies!"

 _Hiding things_ …oh good _grief_ is this what he was talking about the day before? Marinette would almost swear she could feel her pink bag laughing. _He wasn't talking about me at all!_ (Tikki, of course, knew that Adrien had been talking about something completely different the day before, but Marinette didn't need to know about that – at least, not yet).

"Well that sounds like a problem," she finally said, snapping out of her thoughts.

The bell sounded around them, making them both jump and hurry inside for class.

"Can anyone tell me what a motto is?" Ms. Bustier asked several minutes later. In the dead silence of the room, a single voice rang out from the very front row.

"Nothing, what's the 'motto' with you?"

* * *

Needless to say, poor Ladybug was stuck with many, many Lion King puns for the next week straight (though, oddly enough, she didn't really seem to mind).


	7. Loom and Doom (part 1)

_Chat…_

She twisted her wrists slowly in the soft restraints; they didn't really hurt, but they were awkward and uncomfortable, and tied to a heavy metal desk beside her, they prevented much movement. She shifted a bit more, feeling the cold wall up against her back.

 _Where are you…_

The cloth stayed still even as she moved, and a dark look from the looming figure across the room told her to stop moving.

 _I can't…Tikki…_

She leaned her head against the wall behind her, slowly breathing in and out. Not panicking – not yet – but knowing if her partner didn't figure out where she was soon, there was likely to be trouble.

 _Please…_

She could feel the soft metallic buzzing against her right leg, and hoped that wherever he was, his baton was doing the same.

 **2 Months Earlier**

"Noir, what is this?"

Marinette held the sleek black bracelet in her hand, looking skeptically from it to boy in the suit standing in her room. At first glance, it looked like a simple piece of jewelry, but upon closer inspection, the designer could tell that it was more than it seemed. Turning it in her hand, she resisted the urge to laugh, knowing that it was likely a sincere gift, and that he meant well. "Did you get me a…panic button?"

Fortunately for him, Chat's blush was (mostly) hidden by his mask. "Just in case…you know…you…panic or something." When she didn't respond, he waved his arms around self-consciously and jumped to fill the silence with "-or if you just want to hang out or something sometime, ya know." He cleared his throat and leaned oh-so-casually against her desk, watching her as she watched him.

Marinette raised her eyebrows, then looked at him while putting her thumb against the small green silhouette of a cat head that was hidden on the inside of the band. It was just the outline, and next to impossible to see if you weren't looking at it this close. As soon as she put her finger against it, the black bracelet began to pulse slightly and the paw print on his baton lit green, let out a shrill beep, and vibrated as though he was getting a call from Ladybug's yo-yo. Upon closer inspection, she also discovered that when he slid it open it had GPS'd her location, showing a small matching outline to her bracelet in the upper corner of the screen, and it was giving off a coordinate reading of the bracelet against a map of Paris (much like what he looked when she tracked him on her yo-yo, not that he needed to know that).

Chat reached forward and pressed the outline on the bracelet with a gloved hand, clicking on her dot on the GPS screen at the same time, and she watched as both bracelet and baton fell still, and the glowing green map faded from his screen. Shaking her head in silent laughter and mock-defeat, she slid it over her right hand ( _not because she needed it_ , she reasoned to herself, _but because it made him happy_ ).

* * *

"Should I wear it to school?" Mariette asked her kwami the next day, contemplating the simple-looking piece of black jewelry.

"I don't see why not," Tikki squeaked. "If he gave it to Ladybug that would be one thing, but he clearly already knows you as Marinette, so it won't reveal anything if he sees you with it even when he's not Chat Noir."

"That's true.." After another moment of contemplation, Marinette slid it over her wrist. It matched her outfit, after all (pink pants, a white shirt, and black flats and jacket), and in the (incredibly unlikely) event that Chat saw her today (behind the mask or otherwise), she knew it would make him happy. She had no intention of using is as a panic button, as both she and Tikki agreed that that wouldn't work so well if Chat Noir came looking for Marinette in a crisis and found Ladybug instead, but it was still a nice gesture.

Tikki giggled, suddenly struck with a thought. "As long as…you know…he doesn't tell you he made it himself when he's not Chat Noir!"

When she got to school, Marinette dropped into her seat beside Alya and put her backpack by her feet, noticing that she had beat both Nino and Adrien that morning. Her bracelet clinked against the side of the desk as she moved, quickly catching the attention of the girl next to her.

"Wow, cool bracelet, Mari!" Alya reached for her friend's arm, pulling it closer to inspect the new jewelry. "Where did you get it, it's so sleek."

"One of my mom's friends got it for me," Marinette replied, spinning the metallic band around her wrist. Fortunately, her kwami had thought ahead and come up with a better reason than 'a superhero gave it to me', which would for sure raise some red flags. The boys came in as Alya reached for the bracelet as though to pull it off, sending Marinette into a moment of panic. "Don't!"

Alya looked at her strangely, and Nino did the same (Adrien, unnoticed to any of them, was looking quite pleased with himself for some reason). "It's ahh, it's kind of difficult to get on and off over my wrist bone!" Marinette said, holding up her elbow and letting the bracelet slide down toward her hand, where it did indeed come to a halt upon hitting the bottom of her palm (designed to avoid slipping off). Alya, accepting this, smiled and shook her head before turning toward the boys to confirm the trip to the zoo they all had planned for later that week. Marinette ducked her head to hide her self-congratulatory smile. Yes, the bracelet was the perfect size to not fall off, but it was the green outline on the inside that she knew better than to show off. Faint or otherwise, it was an odd design choice that would most likely raise more than a few questions; the particular shade of green may seem random and inconsequential, but for the superhero-obsessed, it would seem all too familiar to be a mere coincidence. The designer looked up to find the blond in front of her was looking at her.

"That's a really cool bracelet, Mari, where'd you get it from? Did you design it?"

Trying not to blush, she shook her head. He gestured toward her arm and she held it out, "casually" resting her face on her free hand to hid the pink that spread through her cheeks when he gently touched her hand to admire the jewelry. "My mom's friend found it and said she thought I would like it." Thank goodness she had practiced the excuse with Tikki and had it memorized, as her brain could no longer process what was happening. As the bell rang and the class got called to order, Adrien smiled at her again and turned back around in his seat, while Marinette stared off into space at the back of his head.

 _He touched me…_

* * *

"One moment, they were supposed to be sound asleep, then _bam_ ," Alya dropped her arm down on the table, causing both the silverware and her friends to jump backward. Poor Marinette, who had been caught up in the story about Alya's little sisters breaking their bedframe, jumped so hard she fell off the bench, landing awkwardly on the ground with a _thump_.

"Woah there Marinette, you good?" Nino, sitting beside her, reached down to pull her back up, noticing the bracelet that was rolling away from her from where it had come loose during her desperate grasp for the table edge. Twisting around to grab it, he managed to snag it on one finger and reached back to the blue-haired girl to return it. Marinette, wincing while shifting on the hard bench and hoping she hadn't just bruised her tailbone, nodded in thanks and accepted it. Nino turned back toward Alya across the table from them, failing to notice the startled expression on Marinette's face that was quickly turning to alarm as she twisted the bracelet in her hand – she knew something that they did not.

 _Thank goodness Adrien is in the bathroom or he might really think I'm weird_ , she thought. Quickly mumbling something about the restroom, she stood up and darted out of the room, leaving her very confused classmates behind her. As she made it to the hall that led to her locker, she fought the urge to run through the empty hallway.

"Marinette, what's wrong?" Tikki poked her head out of the pink bag, looking quite concerned. Marinette held up the bracelet in reply and gave the kwami a look of alarm, who still didn't understand. "Chat Noir's bracelet-?" Tikki asked.

"-is going off," the heroine hissed, turning the corner and slipping out of the side door of the building. She ducked behind a large group of bushes, and Tikki floated forward to investigate. When she realized what was going on, her eyes grew wide and she looked up at her Chosen, at loss for what to do. The bracelet's slight vibrations may go unnoticed, but Chat Noir himself dropping into the middle of the school in front of everyone looking for her certainly wouldn't.

The bracelet in Marinette's hand continued to vibrate, the small green symbol on the inside shaking in alarm.

 _Oh boy are we in for it now…_

* * *

Adrien was having a good day. He understood what was going on in class, the weather was beautiful, and his friend was wearing the bracelet he – er, _Chat Noir_ – made for her. He was even whistling as he washed his hands during lunch, reaching for some paper towels and using them to turn off the tap and dry his hands. As he dropped them in the waste bin, however, he felt an itch on his right hand. Reaching absentmindedly with his left, he froze midstep when he realized what was going on. His ring was vibrating, which could only mean one thing – Marinette was in need of Chat Noir.

After staring at the small quivering band for almost a solid ten seconds, he shook his head and headed out into the hall at a brisk walk, feeling Plagg poking him in the side.

"If she called, are we transforming?" The kwami, knowing full well that showing up at school as Chat Noir may not be good, was bored and looking to shake things up.

"Not yet," the hero muttered, nearing the cafeteria door by their lunch table. "She might have just hit it on accident or something." _After all, what would be the odds of Marinette getting into an emergency the day after he gave her the bracelet?_ Peering around the corner, Adrien caught a glimpse of the table he had left several minutes before, finding that only a duo remained. Ducking back around, his breath caught and he took off in a half-run toward the empty locker rooms. _Apparently, very good._

"Plagg, claws out!"

* * *

Marinette, unfortunately, was still huddled behind the bushes while all of this was happening, Tikki hiding safely in her purse. The bracelet was _still_ going off, shaking in her hand, and the designer had no idea how to stop it. She had tried pressing it like Chat had done the day before with no luck, and knew that by now, almost five minutes after it was set off, he must have gotten the call. Sure enough, less than a minute later she could see him on the window ledge a story above her, his baton open in his hand and scanning the area around him. When he spotted her below him crouched beside the wall, he extended his baton toward the ground and slid down it like a fireman's pole, collapsing it as soon as he hit the ground.

"Marinette? Are you okay?" He knelt down beside her and grabbed her shoulders, looking intensely into her eyes as though trying to read her mind.

"I'm fine, I'm fine, the bracelet accidentally got activated, it's okay." The heroine shrugged out of his grasp, gesturing that she was, in face, perfectly okay and not hurt in the slightest.

Chat Noir let out a huge sigh, leaning against the brick wall beside them. "Geez, Mari, I was worried you were really in trouble for a minute there." He pointed his baton at her in a fake-accusatory way. "Don't ever scare me like that again, do you hear?"

"I'm fine, Chat, really. How did you get here so fast, anyway?" As she said this, the boy in black suddenly seemed quite uncomfortable, shifting and twisting the baton between his hands.

"I was, uh, in the area!" He said quickly, gesturing vaguely at the green around them. "Just scouting out in case of trouble, you know how it is."

Marinette, slightly skeptical and knowing they didn't have patrol set for today, let it go to deal with the bigger issue at hand. "Is there a way that _I_ can turn it off? That would help avoid accidental calls and panic, you know."

Noir looked at her like she was suggesting that they attempt to solve advanced mathematics in the dark while cross-eyed. "That…would be a good idea." He thought for a moment, tapping his clawed glove to his chin. "How about I take it and get it adjusted, then bring it back to you later?" Marinette, seeing the logic in this, was halfway to handing him the bracelet before pausing.

"What if I give it to you later this afternoon? If I show up with my friends again without it they might ask what happened to it."

Chat doffed an invisible hat to her, realizing that she was right and he probably should have thought about that. "Then I shall see you later this afternoon, madam. Say… 4ish?" The blue-haired girl nodded, sliding the bracelet back over her hand and preparing to duck out of the bushes and back into the school. Noir winked at her and extended his baton against the ground, shooting back up to the window ledge where she first spotted him. He sat and watched as she slipped back through the doorway, double-checking that no one noticed her do it. The hero smiled as she looked back up at him before going inside, and when he was sure she couldn't possibly hear him, he whispered after her, "See you soon, Marinette."

The blond waited several seconds after she disappeared, then dropped back down into the bushes to de-transform and follow her inside.

* * *

"How does this thing even work? Did Chat Noir somehow connect it to the Miraculous on his own?" Marinette watched as Master Fu turned the piece of jewelry over in his hands, smiling down at the imprint on the inside. As he did this, the blue-haired heroine was struck with a sudden thought. "Does he know who you are?"

Master Fu chuckled lightly before looking up at her. "No, but his kwami does." Marinette scrunched her eyebrows in confusion. "Plagg always knows how to find me, just like Tikki does, he just chooses to visit less" he continued, handing the bracelet back to her. "He led an untransformed Chat Noir to the area, and the boy wandered around for a bit while Plagg brought me the bracelet and Miraculous, asking if it would be possible to connect them and if I would know how to do it."

Marinette sighed in relief, sliding the bracelet back onto her wrist. It's not that she didn't _want_ her partner to know of Master Fu and the role he played in keeping them safe, but if Chat ever came for a visit and found Marinette, there would surely be questions asked that she didn't know how to answer.

It had been just short of a week now since Chat had given Marinette the bracelet, and it had accidentally been triggered twice in that time – once at the school the day after she got it, and again two days after that when he brought it back. Fortunately, Marinette now had the power to turn it off, so a quick series of taps later saved her from explaining to her parents why Chat Noir would've come crashing into their living room after she took it off to help with the dishes (she had later realized it was waterproof when she accidentally spilled her water bottle on her desk and found the black band perfectly unaffected).

As promised, Noir had appeared on her rooftop the day he met her behind the bushes at the school to collect it. Two days later, he brought it back to her, presenting it with a dramatic bow.

"For you, milady," he had said, taking her hand and placing a kiss on the top of it. Laughing at him, she had pulled her hand back to accept the bracelet, noticing nothing different. Flipping it around, she pressed the silhouette on the inside of the band, watching as his baton lit up beside her. Chat Noir gestured at the hidden button, and when Marinette pushed it again, nothing happened. She raised her eyebrows and looked at him, getting a smile out of her partner. Taking her hand in his, Noir put her finger against the sensor, holding it for a moment, then releasing, followed by a short tap, and repeating the pattern of long then short. The bracelet and baton both fell still, and Marinette couldn't help but to grin up at the look of pride on his face.

The combination of taps was Morse code for the letter "C", Chat explained, so that if she set it off and it was taken from her, "the bad guys can't turn it off, but you still can!"

"And you do anticipate many bad guys, Chat Noir?" She teased, reaching out to flick the bell on his collar. He watched as she ran her finger along the metallic ring on her wrist, realizing that something else had changed. With a slight twist at just the right angle, the band broke in half in her hands.

"This is why I didn't bring it back to you yesterday," Noir started, ignoring her pervious question (intentionally or not, Marinette couldn't quiet tell). "My kwami thought that maybe it would be a good idea if you could wear it around your ankle or something so that maybe it wouldn't get in the way of when you were writing and stuff, and there would be a smaller chance of it getting accidentally set off."

Marinette, slightly taken aback, continued to examine the clip between the pieces. She had been wearing the bracelet about every other day, and found that as cool as it was, it kept getting in the way while she was taking notes in class. The first time she slipped it off while writing, she almost left it behind on accident, had it not been for Adrien who found it on her desk and returned it to her.

Now, at Master Fu's shop, the more questions she asked the more she felt like she had.

"How does it come apart but still work?"

"The GPS device is only in a small part of the bracelet at all," Wayzz chimed in from behind, sitting on the counter facing Marinette. His Chosen nodded, gesturing for her to hand it to him again. Master Fu rotated the intact ring and twisted slightly while pulling the halves apart, unclipping them from each other. He presented Marinette with the half containing the green silhouette, pointing out that the chip that linked to the GPS was only a couple of centimeters long.

"You don't have to keep it if you don't want to, I could most certainly have Wayzz or Plagg tell our young friend that it seems like a bad idea to link his hero form with you." He handed back the other half, watching as this time she pulled her right foot toward her and clipped it around her ankle. She knew it would disappear when she transformed (she and Tikki had tested, just to make sure), so she wasn't worried about forgetting to remove it when it came time for a fight.

"Marinette?" Tikki asked, floating up slightly from her heroine's shoulder. "What do you think?"

The blue-haired girl smiled, looking down at the black band. She turned it so she could see the feline form on the inside, its ears perked high, proud of where it was. "I think I'll hang on to it, if that sounds okay to you."

Master Fu smiled, glad that she had accepted the gift. She might not know who the boy behind the mask was, but he did, and someday she would learn just how much her friend from school cared about her.

"I'd probably better go and get some homework done," Marinette sighed, standing up from the floor. Her mentor did the same, taking her hand in his and nodding his head.

"Stay safe, Marinette. He might not realize who you are, but a chance to call Chat Noir at a moment's notice might be of good use someday. Let me know if you have any questions or problems, okay?"

The heroine nodded in thanks, then slipped quietly out the door and headed for home.

 **Present**

 _Chat where are you…_

The black band by her foot continued to pulse, unnoticed by the world.

Marinette refused to panic – she was a superhero, after all, and she knew her partner would do everything he could to answer her call. She closed her eyes against the darkness, listening to the quiet sound of butterfly wings around her.

Across the slumbering city of Paris, the light-footed shadow slept on, a small green light flashing in vain for his help.


	8. Loom and Doom (part 2)

"So…" Marinette started, coughing awkwardly. "How are things?" The villain across the room looked up at her, seemingly startled that she broke the silence. When he looked away again without responding, Marinette nodded as though he had said something. "Cool story," she whispered, feeling Tikki giggle from inside her pocket. She could just hear the kwami's thoughts now; here they were, surrounding by a dozen or so potential akuma butterflies and within feet of Hawkmoth himself, yet the Ladybug side of her just couldn't sit there and wait for Chat Noir to arrive. Oh no, the superhero in her was having none of this "waiting for someone to save me" bologna – unfortunately, until Chat _did_ come save her, however, Marinette couldn't exactly just transform and swing out of the room in front of current company. Tikki was getting restless and nervous this close to their enemy, and Marinette didn't even want to think about what would happen if Hawkmoth realized the kwami was there, or who she really was. Alone, an untransformed Ladybug was just a sitting duck at risk of being akumatized, and a revealed Ladybug was doomed.

 _Alright kitty, anytime now would be great…_

Across town, the shadow in black was finally rising, hackles raised and itching for a fight.

* * *

"Ah, Chat Noir, it's nice to see you!" Hawkmoth boomed, startling Marinette (whose eyes had been closed – it was late, and Chat was taking so long she was dang near ready for a nap). She looked around, expecting to see her partner nearby, but there was no one around but the butterflies – and Mothy, of course. Looking to her left, she found a projection against the large blank wall, showing Noir standing defensively on a very familiar rooftop.

"What have you done with her?" Chat shouted, crouched by the trapdoor that led to Marinette's room and looking around wildly. He couldn't see them, clearly, but he evidentially realized that Hawkmoth could see him. _He went to my house first,_ Marinette realized, sitting up and suddenly full of nervous energy, the black band on her ankle still vibrating in alarm. _Hawkmoth set up a camera for him, he doesn't realize that I called Chat for help!_ She willed her partner to play along with whatever Hawkmoth was going to say, and only track her GPS when he was at less of a risk of ambush. If he went along with Hawkmoth's plan, Noir could swing around and follow her GPS later. This had to be a temporary hideout, she had long ago figured out; Marinette was fairly sure that any plan of Hawkmoth's wouldn't include Chat Noir (and presumably Ladybug) landing straight in the heart of the lair, where he had nowhere to run. Of course, waiting on her partner meant time to reflect on just how she had gotten into this mess in the first place. Marinette sighed; this was going to be a long night.

* * *

The day had started fairly normally. Marinette had gotten ready and gone to school, clipping the bracelet around her ankle as had become her habit in the past couple of weeks (which, she supposed, technically made it an anklet, but whatever). She had gone to school, come home to do her homework (a.k.a. working on designing a new jacket), then gone to Alya's for a while in the afternoon. When she got home, she had dinner with her parents and retreated to the rooftop to work on actual homework until it got too dark to see the page in front of her. She met up with Noir as Ladybug for a patrol, just in case. It had been suspiciously quiet around lately, and the pair were worried that it meant that Hawkmoth was scheming something major (which, apparently, he was). Chat had insisted stopping by Marinette's house in case she was home to say hi, but (unsurprisingly), the duo found that she had already gone to bed and all of her lights had been turned off. After heading back to the Tower, they parted ways for the night, Marinette wandering toward home and de-transforming in a nearby alley, in case her partner decided to come back.

About a block away from her house, she discovered that it wasn't her partner making an appearance she should be worried about – instead, one of her neighbors was waiting outside the bakery for her, and it took her too long to realize that they had been akumatized. Before she could duck away to transform or call for help, she found herself being lifted up and away. Literally. In that moment, she had to give Hawkmoth some credit; an akuma to kidnap someone and giving them wings with which to do it? It was, after all, quite a smart move (unfortunate for her, but good for him, honestly). Fortunately, Hawkmoth's hideout was up a flight of stairs, and as the akuma set her down and pushed her up the staircase, Marinette "tripped", giving her just enough time to trigger the cat silhouette on the inside of the band on her ankle. If she hadn't been afraid of being recognized, she would have just transformed right then and there, but revealing Tikki and the Miraculous that close to their enemy (not to mention Tikki still hadn't eaten since they last transformed) seemed like a terrible idea. Even if her akumatized neighbor wouldn't remember anything, there may be cameras, and Hawkmoth would figure out her secret identity before she even made it up the stairs. After all, if he knew Marinette was coming and got Ladybug instead, it wouldn't be hard to figure out what had happened. As soon as Marinette had been sat down on the edge of the circular room at the top of the stairs, Hawkmoth had sent the akuma victim away, sending him most of the way back home before recalling the butterfly, leaving her neighbor stunned but unhurt.

So now Marinette sat, her hands wrapped lightly behind her, watching her poor partner go on a wild goose chase across the city. He was on his way to the Eiffel Tower at the moment, to wait for Ladybug upon Hawkmoth's instruction. Mothy had set up several computer monitors on a table at the front of the room, all displaying feeds from various traffic cameras across the city. Using them, he tracked Chat all the way to the Tower, where he activated the camera setup and microphone that had been planted there ahead of time (not so good for her partner, but dang, Hawkmoth had really been planning ahead for this).

"So, Chat Noir, as soon as your partner bothers to show up, we'll make a deal for your friend, shall we?"

"Where's Marinette?" Chat jumped toward the camera planted on the metal beam by his head, looking angrier than she had ever seen him. His face filled up most of the wall, bringing his wrath to larger-than-life proportions. Did he really care that much about her, or would he be that worried about anyone who was kidnapped by his worst enemy?

"Tsk tsk, calm yourself," Hawkmoth cooed, acting as though he was bored. Ladybug knew better, though, and knew that he was reversing the game of cat and mouse, relishing in teasing with the hero in black. The man in purple strolled casually to her side of the room, and a smaller feed popped up on the glass next to Noir's face, showing a barely-distinguishable Marinette half-hidden in the darkness. Chat, who could now see her, pulled his baton loose and extended it in his hand, as though fighting the camera feed would do either of them any good.

"Marinette! Are you okay? What did he do to you?"

Hawkmoth was looking at her, clearly also expecting an answer.

Marinette sighed. Why oh why did Chat insist on going by her house tonight, after patrol? She could be asleep right now. "I'm fine, Chat, just could use a little help here."

"Are you hurt?" The anger was morphing into concern, and Hawkmoth was watching this change carefully, unseen by her partner. _He's calculating,_ Marinette thought. _Looking for ways to use me against Noir._

"I'm fine," she repeated, rolling her eyes slightly. Honestly, it was like he thought she couldn't take care of herself or something. Tikki shifted slightly in her jacket, pressing closer to her Chosen's side to stay out of sight. If only she could just transform, this whole mess would be over with and she could go to bed. Thank goodness it was Friday and she didn't have school tomorrow. From the look on Hawkmoth's face as Chat kept talking, this could be awhile.

* * *

"Why does it have to be Friday night," Chat muttered, leaping from streetlight to streetlight on his way to the Tower. "Couldn't have been Monday, when there would be less traffic at ten thirty at night, but nooooo, it _had_ to be a Friday!" He had already tried calling Ladybug multiple times since Marinette's call had managed to wake him up (actually it was Plagg that woke him up – the kwami was annoyed with the vibrating ring and told Adrien to make it stop). If only he knew where his partner was, he could just go get her, but by the looks of it, she was asleep and out for the night unless someone got akumatized and the news alert woke her up. He had a GPS of Marinette's bracelet and knew full well it was unlikely he would find her at home, but he had to check just in case. Unfortunately, Hawkmoth's monitor had quickly proven him otherwise. Adrien was tempted to ignore the villain and just follow his baton to his friend, but he had the feeling that if Hawkmoth didn't realize he could easily find Marinette (as long as she was wearing the bracelet), it wasn't information that should be given away if he could help it. He quickly scaled the Tower and landed on the highest viewing deck, thankfully deserted at the late hour. Before Noir had a chance to do much more than land, he heard the dreaded voice sound from somewhere behind him.

"So, Chat Noir, as soon as your partner bothers to show up, we'll make a deal for your friend, shall we?"

 _Ladybug, oh where are you?_

"Where's Marinette?" He shouted, spinning around and glaring at what he hoped was the camera that he knew had to be there somewhere. After a moment, his sharp eyes found the small red dot hidden on the beam near his head – out of sight for anyone without good night vision. As much as he hated Hawkmoth, he did have to give him some credit – the man knew how to plan ahead.

"Tsk, tsk, calm yourself," the voice continued, irritating Chat further. _Calm_ himself, why in the world would he be _calm_ when his friend was in _danger_ – _and it was his fault_? As he continued to stare hard at the area around the red light (the camera, unlike the light, was much harder to spot), a small screen about the size of his phone suddenly lit up less than a foot from his face, causing him take a step back as his eyes focused on what he was looking at. A moment later, there she was – Marinette, sitting on the floor with her legs twisted under her and her hands behind her back, looking for all the world like she was ready for a nap.

"Marinette! Are you okay? What did he do to you?" Noir saw Hawkmoth on the edge of the screen, not looking at him but at the girl on the floor.

"I'm fine, Chat, just could use a little help here." The audio crackled little a bit, breaking her sentence in two. Regardless, Noir got the message – rescue now, talk later. One last question though.

"Are you hurt?" His anger was fading slightly to make room for concern for his friend. He wasn't paying attention to Hawkmoth anymore, and frankly could care less what the man with the butterfly pin was thinking about him right now.

"I'm fine," Marinette repeated, still sitting half in the shadows and making a face. Adrien didn't quite believe her, but a nudge from Plagg got Chat Noir back into action.

"What do you want?" He addressed Hawkmoth now, still feeling his baton vibrating in his hand. Her bracelet was too, he realized, and hoped that the villain wouldn't get close enough to notice (which, he realized later, was exactly why she was sitting cross-legged like she was – the vibrations were muffled and unnoticeable).

"I want your Miraculous in exchange for your friend," Hawkmoth answered, "and Ladybug's earrings too if she ever shows up. Where is your better half, anyway?" Chat ignored the jab, and noticed out of the corner of his eye that Marinette looked offended on his behalf. _Point to Mari,_ he thought, turning in a circle to scan the city. Ladybug may be absent, but it seemed like she was rubbing off on Marinette, who was looking less scared and more simply inconvenienced by the moment.

"What if she doesn't come?" Chat asked, realizing that his fighting alone was becoming a very real possibility. His hand tightened around his baton, the other starting to shake. Fighting for himself was one thing, but being alone with his friend on the line was an entirely different game – one that Chat wasn't willing to lose.

Hawkmoth seemed to contemplate this for a moment, and Adrien was getting the feeling that he was being played with. "Make sure she doesn't."

"Excuse me?" Of all the things Chat was expecting him to say, that certainly wasn't it. Whatever Hawkmoth's plan was, he had managed to lose Noir entirely.

"I've changed my mind. Tell your Ladybug to stay away, and then you alone have one hour. If you manage to find your Marinette in that time, you take her and go. If you fail, or if Ladybug makes an appearance anywhere in this city, return to the Tower and we will make a trade, your ring for her." Marinette's eyes had grown wide, and Chat could see the whites even on the small screen. He didn't need an hour, he only needed a matter of minutes to be at her side, and they both knew it. When she saw that he was looking at her, she gave the smallest of nods; evidently, she believed that Hawkmoth was so sure he wouldn't find them that he was telling the truth. Hawkmoth's face filled the small screen.

"Your time starts now." The screen went black.

* * *

 _Whelp, now we're in for it_ , thought Marinette. There was a rumbling in her chest as the moments passed. If he thought that he was going to beat Chat Noir just because of her, he was very, _very_ wrong. When Hawkmoth walked away, she stretched her shoulders as far as she could in the ties, and felt Tikki shifting in her jacket – if it was a fight that he wanted, it was a fight he was going to get.

* * *

Chat Noir was nothing if not efficient, and even as the screen in front of him was going dark he had his baton out and ringing for his partner. When she once again didn't answer, he left her a message.

"I'll explain later, but if you transform just call me, _do not come out_ , okay? Stay home, don't let anyone see you! Hawkmoth wants a trade, but he only wants one of us at a time. _Do not come out when you're transformed_ or Marinette is in trouble, okay? Talk soon!" He reached up and smashed the red light, not bothering with a Cataclysm. When it blinked out, he nodded, satisfied, and made a mental note to come back for the broken camera later.

In a moment, he had the illuminated map of Paris on his screen. The moment after that, the uppermost viewing deck of the Eiffel Tower was empty.

He had tried to wait at least a little bit, he really did. He spent the better part of thirty minutes moving seemingly aimlessly across the city, slowly working his way toward her. If Hawkmoth could see him (and Chat suspected that he could), he wanted to at least be believably lucky. If Moth got tipped off that Marinette had called for help and given away her location, it might mean trouble for both of them, and with Marinette between him and his enemy, that wasn't a risk he was about to take. Before long, Adrien simply couldn't stand it anymore, and dropped onto a nearby rooftop. A quick glance at his baton confirmed that she was less than 100 feet away from him, and his bet was the second floor of the (seemingly) abandoned building underneath his boots. Moving a few feet toward the opposite edge of the rooftop, his suspicions where confirmed.

 _Yup, found it._

A quick circle of the roof proved there to be a lack of windows on the second story, and the only vent he could find was too small for him to fit through.

"Alright," he muttered, moving carefully. "Stairs it is." Extending his baton like a fire pole, Noir slid to the ground and tested the nearest window, finding it to be unlocked. Crossing his fingers and hoping that the building wasn't fully wired, he slowly slid the window open (he would learn later that Marinette was right, this was a temporary lair, as Hawkmoth wasn't about to give away his main location). He climbed through the window to find himself in a large, wood-paneled room. A quick scan through the darkness showed him a small door to his right and only a single camera, which he quickly ducked through the doorway to avoid (thank goodness for night vision).Through the door led to only a narrow wooden staircase; he started to climb, and was halfway up when he heard voices.

"Anything you care to share about our wiry-tailed friend before he fails in his task?" _Wiry-tailed?_ If he was less terrified of where he was, he would have scoffed.

"He won't fail." Silence followed this.

 _Go Marinette!_ Adrien was close to shaking in his boots just hearing Hawkmoth so close, but from the sound of it, she wasn't having the same problem.

"And what makes you so sure?" Hawkmoth sounded genuinely intrigued.

"He's Chat Noir."

"And?"

"And he's a hero."

Stated like a fact, leaving no room for argument.

Chat was grinning now, almost forgetting about the danger they were in. His Ladybug may be absent, but it felt like she was waiting for him to come fight by her side. Slowly moving to the top of the staircase, he found a closed door in his way. Checking the map on his baton once more, he found Marinette's dot less than 10 feet away. Pressing his thumb to the screen, his baton stopped vibrating for the first time since he had transformed that night.

 _Here goes nothing._

* * *

Hawkmoth was looking at her from across the room like she was crazy, but Marinette refused to look away – not even when the pulsing black band on her ankle went quiet.

 _He's here._

To her right, there was a _bang_ , and her partner stood in front of her.

"Where have you been?" It was a reflex that she said it, Ladybug once again making herself known. Chat laughed, beaming in spite of it all.

"Better late than never, madam."

* * *

Noir couldn't help but to smile. She was _there_ , and she was _okay_ , and she – Chat suddenly found himself on the floor, the wind knocked out of him entirely.

"How did you find her?" Hawkmoth was standing over him, glaring down at the hero for all he was worth. Needless to say, Chat was a bit speechless. Fortunately for him, the blue-haired girl was not.

"Hey, Hawkmoth, think fast!" Think fast he did, but the villain was still too slow to catch the metallic chair that had flown his way. Noir, getting his breath back, managed to sit up and stare at his friend, who was standing beside him looking angrier than he had ever seen her, the fight in her eyes reminding him of another blue-eyed heroine he knew.

"Are you gonna help me or not?" She was smiling, holding out her hand to help him up.

Taking just a moment to bow dramatically her way as he stood, the hero in black turned to face his enemy.

"I made it in less than an hour, so now you let us both go, end of deal."

"Hmm, tempting…" Hawkmoth seemed much to calm for Noir's liking, having recovered from the flying chair. "But I think I'm going to have to pass on that one. You see, I intend to leave here with your Miraculous, regardless of when you arrived."

"You'll do no such thing!" Chat looked sideways at Marinette, who, standing braced beside him, suddenly seemed aware of what she had just said. "I mean uh…what's a Miraculous?"

"It's what gives me my powers," Chat explained quickly, not taking his eyes off of Hawkmoth and still wondering why she was acting so much like his partner, but glad that she was. It was like she knew he needed help to get them both out, and wasn't afraid of the villain she knew nothing about (she couldn't possibly have any idea of how powerful a Miraculous could be). Hawkmoth looked at her like he had just realized she was there.

"How did you untie…never mind," he waved his hand through the air as though warding off a fly. "No matter, please hand over the Miraculous and you both are free to go."

Noir almost laughed out loud, moving slightly sideways to put himself between his friend and his enemy. He had a sneaking suspicion that she had a better handle on the situation that it looked like she did, but he wasn't about to take any chances. The door was beside them, but far enough away that while he could easily make the jump, Marinette might be too slow, even though she was no longer tied to the metal desk (the matching chair to which she had just launched across the room; what Hawkmoth would have done if he knew Ladybug's kwami had undone the ties on her hands, Marinette was almost curious to know).

"Thanks for the offer, but I think we'll be leaving now." Chat spun around toward the door that he just came through to find Marinette standing between him and it, still and tense, looking at a spot just over his shoulder. A moment later, he caught sight of a pair of small dark wings as they floated into his peripheral vision.

 _Akum- Marinette!_

Striking out sideways at the butterfly, he spun around and threw his baton like a boomerang, where it connected with Hawkmoth's staff and sent it spinning out sideways, and he hoped that the small moth-like creature had done the same.

"C'mon!" Reaching for Marinette, Chat bolted for the door, catching the baton in his free hand as he ran. The small group (flock? cluster?) swarm of butterflies was growing agitated, but their white wings meant that they could do nothing, at least for now. He scanned for the dark-winged butterfly as he pushed Marinette down the staircase, but didn't see it anywhere. He shooed away a white one that was too close to them for comfort, but the dark-winged creature had disappeared. When he noticed the black staff flying toward him, he pulled hard to close the door and ran.

Marinette was waiting for him at the bottom of the stairs, looking completely unscathed and much less out of breath than he had expected, adjusting her jacket around her. She was muttering to herself, making faces to match what she was saying. "Can't _believe_ him, the _nerve_ , _kidnapping_ people-"

"Are you okay?" He stopped beside her, still searching for the butterfly, slightly startled at her lack of, well, being startled. "Did he hurt you, did that akuma get you, did-"

"Duck!" At her command, Noir hit the floor (though he wasn't sure why he trusted her direction so much), expecting the blue-haired girl to do the same. Instead, he looked up to find her holding a black butterfly that had evidentially been aiming for her hair ribbons, hand partway toward her jacket pocket. Before he could say anything and without offering an explanation as to how she did something he was sure was impossible, Marinette grabbed his arm and pulled him along behind her as she headed for the very window that he had come in. Hawkmoth might be slightly dazed from the hit with the baton, but it wouldn't be long before he came down after them.

"Here," Chat Noir came to his senses enough to lift her up and out of the window, diving out after and closing it after him. Pulling her close against his side, he extended his baton to get them to the roof. They rolled slightly upon impact, both shifting to avoid hitting the other as they stood up near the edge of the roof. Knowing they only had moments to spare, Noir put his hands of Marinette's shoulders so that she was facing him.

"How did you do that?"

"Do what?"

He gestured to the dark butterfly she had pinned by the wings between her fingers.

"Oh, I just, uh, I think it was headed toward you, so it-I-uh, caught it before it hit you!" Only partially believing her, Noir knew that regardless, it was time to move.

"Can you get on my back?"

"What?"

He sighed and smiled (she really was too cute sometimes) and lifted her with a twist, hooking her legs around his waist and feeling her arms lock around his chest as she caught on to what was happening. It felt oddly natural, but there was no time to dwell. When Hawkmoth made it to the roof less than a minute later, he was greeted by a stale puddle and an empty sky.

* * *

"That was way too close, Tikki." Marinette was lying on her bed, arm over her eyes and lights still off from earlier. It was just passed midnight, and her parents, assuming that she had made it home after she texted them that she was at the bakery earlier that night, were still sound asleep.

"Could you…image…if…" The kwami was starting to giggle so hard she could hardly speak. Her Chosen opened her eyes, wondering what in the world was so funny.

"Imagine…if Hawkmoth knew…who he had really kidnapped!"

"Uggggg, Tikki!" Marinette pressed her pillow over her eyes, not even _wanting_ to think about what would have happened if the villain had realized that Tikki was there. Though she had to admit; there was almost an entire hour of just Marinette and Hawkmoth in the same room, yet he never even seemed to suspect who she was. Even when the kwami had untied her when Chat had come bursting through the doorway, Hawkmoth had failed to notice until she had – literally – hit him over the head. Whether there was some sort of magic involved, or if Hawkmoth was simply too absorbed in his plan to put the pieces together, she had no idea.

"And that butterfly, Marinette, you almost got caught by Chat Noir _twice_!"

"It was fine, Tikki, Chat didn't even notice the first time!" The first butterfly that had tried to akumatized her had met its fate and been purified in the hands – or, _paws_ – of the kwami in her pocket before being sent away, and Marinette had been trying to do the same with the next one at the bottom of the stairs when Noir had noticed that she caught it. Come to think of it, he still had that akumatized butterfly, waiting to give it to Ladybug to purify.

"I should probably transform, shouldn't I? I bet there are at least three messages from Chat Noir just waiting for me, not to mention that akuma."

"Probably." Tikki was still giggling. "He should still be at the Tower if you wanted to meet him." The hero in black had made sure to smash and remove the camera on her rooftop as well as checking for more, and had said he was off to the Tower to do the same there.

"Tikki, spots on!"

* * *

"And then out of nowhere, this chair came flying in front of me and totally knocked him off his feet!" Ladybug laughed and nodded along, sitting beside her partner on the uppermost deck of the most recognizable building in Paris. The akuma had been purified and a brief summary from Noir of what had happened had been told the night before (or, technically, the very, _very_ early hours of this morning). Now, the day after his daring rescue, Ladybug and Chat Noir sat, overlooking the Saturday night life below them, as he retold the story in perfect detail.

"You have got to come with me sometime when Marinette is home, you would totally love her," Chat said, nudging her shoulder.

Marinette smiled beneath the mask, leaning down to rest her head against his shoulder as he leaned back on his hands. "Perhaps someday I will, Chaton. After all, from what I'm hearing, without Marinette around, you would have been done for back there." Her partner laughed, raising his hands in mock defeat and ruffling her hair. Adrien might be a superhero, but he knew that without help sometimes, he would be doomed.

And who better to help than his blue-eyed pair of heroines?


End file.
